Jaken (The Untouchables MC 6.5)

“What up, Pate?”

Payton and her friends were here for the wings. Something I always encouraged.

“Hi daddy,” she said, making my heart swell about a thousand times. I had adopted her when I married her mother. Those two girls had changed my life. And our family had grown since. I couldn’t be happier.

“How was school, pumpkin?”

“Good,” she said, but then she wrinkled her nose. “I got a C on my math test.”

“These things happen,” I said, putting my hand on her shoulder. “We’ll work harder on it for next time.”

“Yeah,” she said, still looking down. “Oh but I got an A on my history test!”

“See? You are a smart cookie. Everything is not easy for everyone. We all have our strengths.”

“You and mom have about a million.”

“Just seems that way. Adults get better at faking it.”

She laughed and skipped back to her table after giving me another little half hug. She made every day brighter. I couldn’t have loved her more if I gave birth to her myself and Michelle had adopted her, instead.

“Great kid.”

“Yeah she is. Doesn’t your girl have a bunch?”

“Siblings. She’s so tough. I can’t imagine why she would risk letting someone like me around her family. They have enough shit to deal with.”

“Listen to me,” I said, using my best dad voice. “That is bullshit. She would be lucky to have you. Any woman would. I don’t care if she is Mother fucking Theresa. You are a good man, and what happened was not your fault.”

“Maybe not. But I am the one who has to live with it.”

“I know. And that isn’t fair. But you never know what life might bring your way.”

He nodded and went back to work, but he didn’t look convinced. A moment later the door opened and my beautiful wife breezed in, making the entire bar look classier in a heartbeat. She was just that gorgeous.

She walked right up to me, draping her arms over my shoulders, and giving me a big kiss. I grinned at her.

“I thought you just dropped the girls off.”

“Would I miss the opportunity to kiss my husband?” She asked, looking offended. “I think not.”

She set her purse down on the bar and waved her phone at me.

“I was just on the phone with Kelly. She wants to meet Jaken’s girl.”

“She’s not his girl yet. He is convinced he isn’t good enough for her.”

“But she will be,” Michelle said firmly. And just like that, I felt sure about it too.

“I hope so. He deserves a break.”

She nodded. Mich new the whole story. It was a sign of trust that Jaken had told her. His life was on the line.

“Yes, he does. And we are going to make sure he gets it.”

She kissed me again and went to sit with the girls. Her gorgeous ass made me stare as she strode across the room. The girls clamored to sit next to her. She was the epitome of ‘cool mom’ and the girls all knew it. And that was another reason I loved the hell out of my wife.

Chapter Nine

Jaken

“I hope you brought your appetite,” I said with a smile. “The portions here are huge.”

“I am never afraid to ask for a doggie bag,” Colleen said with a twinkling smile. She was a little bit shy tonight. Well, even more than usual.

The girl might be strong and tough at work but she wasn’t exactly aggressive. She was overly polite and proper. Careful. Sweet. Thoughtful.

And so beautiful it almost hurt to look at her.

I must be a glutton for punishment, because I was struggling to look away.

In fact, every time I walked in the door of my house, I marched right to the dresser and opened the dossier Cain and Trace had made for me. I opened it. I stared at the pictures of her. I did the same thing before I went to bed, and before I left for work.

Hell, I did it lots of other times too.

But the real thing? Being with her in person now? Listening to her talk and watching her eat? That was priceless.

I could only hope I would get a chance to touch her later.

My plan had been to offer to show her my place. But that felt forward. Forced. I wasn’t sure she would go for it. I wouldn’t try and take things too far though.

Maybe if I told her that, she would come.

Other than that, it just left the car. Again. We could park somewhere. But I wasn’t sure I could handle that level of frustration.

And getting in trouble with the law was low on my list of fun things to do. At best, it would ruin the date. At worst, it could get me deported.

We ordered and sipped red wine. I noticed she ordered one of the simplest, least expensive things on the menu. I told her she didn’t have to do that. To get whatever she wanted. But she just smiled and asked me about my day.